Pencil-sharpening device.



No. 747,382. PATENTED DEG. 22; 1903. H. E. CURTIS. PENCIL SHARPENINGDEVICE.

APPLIOATION FILED 00T.l0, 1902 2 SHEETSSHBET 1.

- WITNESSES [MEMO/i %Q%% M Hen r 5. Cu rt 1 s ATTORNEYS m: nunms PETER:ca, PHOTO-Ln no" WASHINGTON. n. c.

UNITED STATES Patented December 22, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

PENCIL-SHARPENING DEVICE SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters PatentNo. 747,382, dated December 22, 1903. Application filed October 10,1902. fierial No. 126,656. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that LHENRY ELLsWoRTH CUR- TIS, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of NewYork, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inPencil-Sharpening Devices, of which the following is a full and completespecification, such as will enable those skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same.

The object of this inventionis to provide an improved pencil-sharpeningdevice designed for use in offices, schools, and other and similarplaces, a further object being to provide a device by which pencils ofany description, kind, or class may be sharpened quickly and neatly andwithout the litter which is caused by a knife or similar sharpener andone that can be secured in a convenient place accessible to all whodesire to use the same.

The invention is fully disclosed in the following specification,of'which the accompanying drawings form a part, in which the separateparts of my improvement are designated by suitable reference charactersin each of the views, and in which- 7 Figure 1 is a front side elevationof myimproved pencil-sharpening device; Fig. 2, a sectional back sideelevation thereof; Fig. 3, a sectional plan view thereof; Fig. 4, asection on the line 4 4 of Fig. 1; Fig. 5, a face view of a clutch whichI employ; Fig. 6, a similar view with the face-plate of the clutchremoved, and Fig. 7 aview similar to Fig. 3 of details of theconstruction and showing a modification.

In the practice of my invention I-provide a frame or support comprisinga base a, an

upright portion a and a horizontal top portion a which is provided atthe left-hand end thereof with an upright member a and at the right-handend thereof with an upright member a 1 p Mounted in the top of theupright member a is a horizontal tubular shaft b,screw-threaded on itsouter side and provided at one side with a longitudinal groove b Mountedon the tubular shaft 1) is a gear-wheel b provided with a spline or ribb which fits in the groove b and by means of this construction thetubular shaft 6 is free to move through sition by the spring 0 the wheelb and said shaft is wheel.

Mounted in the top of the frame member a is a verticallymovable pin 0,normally held in a raised position by spring 0 and this pin is providedat one side with a longitudinal recess 0 adapted to receive theend of ascrew 0 which is passed horizontally through that part of the member ain which the pin 0 is mounted, and by means of this construction thesaid pin is made vertically movable, while outward movement is limitedby the screw 0 and said pin is normally held in a raised po- The pin 0isalso provided on the bottom end thereof with transverse threads orteeth 0 which correspond with the threads on the tubular shaft 1), andby depressing said pin by the thumb or finger and at the same timeturning the wheel b the tubular shaft 1) will be fed inwardly oroutwardly, as hereinafter described.

Mounted horizontally of the frame or support and in bearings formed onor connected with the members a and a is a shaft (1, and this shaft isprovided at one end with a gearturned by said wheel 01 which operates inconnection with the wheel b and the other end of said shaft is providedwith a beveled gear-wheel d Mounted in the top portion of the member aof the main frame or support and at a slight lateral angle to thetubular shaft 1) is a main shaft e, provided at one end with a crank eadjacent to which is'a beveled gearwheel a which operates inconnectionwith the beveled gear-wheel d and said shaft is provided withan annular groove e adapted to receive the end of a screw a by means ofwhich the said shaft is prevented from longitudinal movement.

The upright member 0. of the main frame or support is provided with anarm a which projects at right angles to the shaft 6, and

-mounted in the arm a isasupplemental shaft f, which is parallel withthe shaft 6 and substantiallyin the same horizontal plane. That part ofthe shaftf which passes through the arm a is screw-threaded atf and thesaid arm is correspondingly threaded, and placed on the outer end of thescrew-threaded portion of the shaftfis a nut f, having a handle f Theshaft f is also provided with a thin collar f which fits in thecorresponding recess in the arm a in the position of the parts shown inFig. 3, and mounted on said shaft is a short sleeve g, having a pinionor smaller gear-wheel 9 which operates in connection with a larger wheel9 secured to the shaft e. The short sleeve g is provided centrally withan annular flange or collar 9 against which is placed a disk or wheel 9and the outer end of the sleeve g is screw-threaded, as shown at g, andplaced thereon. In the formoL construction shown is a fly-wheel g", andat the outer end of the shaft fis a screw 9 having a head 9 which holdsthe tube g upon the shaftf.

Instead of using the fiy-wheel g for the purpose of holding the disk orwheel 91 on the sleeve g an ordinary nut may be employed; but I preferthe use of the fly-wheel, for the reason that it facilitates and aidsthe operation of the device or machine. The disk or wheel 9 may becomposed of any desired material and in the form of construction shownis sanded on both sides, as shown at h in Figs. 1 and 2, said wheelbeing preferably rougher on one side than on the other, or an ordinaryemery-wheel may be employed, if desired.

The member a of the main frame or support is also provided with asupplemental upwardly-directed member or arm '1; between the wheels 9and g and this member is provided at the top thereof with a conicalsocket adapted to receive the end of a pencil to be sharpened, and saidconical socket i is provided with a longitudinal opening on the sideadjacentto the wheel g and the smaller end thereof is open at i and theside of the open end at 6 adjacent to the wheel 9 is preferably providedwith a finger-piece i.

The tubular shaft b is provided at its inner end with a clutch-head k,the inner side of which is provided with three dogs k pivoted at each ofwhich is provided with an outwardly-directed projection is and with aninwardly-directed nose I0 and each of these dogs is provided with aspring is, secured to the clutch-head 7c and adapted to force the saiddogs outwardly. Mounted on the clutchhead It is a ring or band m, whichis held in place by a plate 091*, which is secured to the clutch-head kby headed pins orscrews it on which the dogs 70 are pivoted, and thering or band m is provided internally with cam-surfaces m which coactwith the dogs 10 and at one end of each of which is a radial shoulder orprojection m and by turning the ring or band m in one direction thenoses of the dogs R will be forced inwardly, and by turning said ring orband in the other direction the noses of said dogs will be forcedoutwardly by the springs k The plate m is provided with a centralopening at, through which a pencil 0 may be passed, and by passing apencil through the tubular shaft b, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and

3, and then turning the ring or band an to the right the dogs 70 will becaused to securely grasp and hold the pencil. In this position of theparts the pointed end of the pencil is forced to enter the socket 11 asshown in FigfIS, and if now the pin 0 be depressed and the crank 6turned the wheel 9 Will also be turned, together with the tubular shaftb, and said tubular shaft b will be fed forwardly or in the direction ofthe socket 2' and the pencil will be gradually sharpened, as will bereadily understood. The forward movement of the tubular shaft b is veryslow and depends on the comparative sizes of the gears 01 b and e and dtogether with the pitch of the thread of the tubular shaft 1), and

itwill be apparent that this forward movement of the tubular shaft 1)may be regulated as desired in the construction of the device.

The side of the socket member 2' adjacent to the disk or wheel 9 is, ashereinbefore stated, open, and the said disk or wheel forms a part ofthe socketinto which the end of the pencil passes, and by adjusting theposition of the shaft f in the arm a it will be seen that the capacityof the socket 1? may be regulated to an extent and by means of thisadjustment a longer or shorter point may be provided for the pencil.

In Fig. 7 I have shown a modification in which I substitute for the diskor wheel g a disk or wheel 1', which is thickened except at the center,whereby annular beveled portions 1' are formed, and sandpaper is securedto the opposite sides of the disk or wheel 1', as shown at r 1 alsosecure to the arm or support r a plate 1', which has a flange-piece 1',adapted to bear on the point of the pencil as it passes through thesocket-piece i The plate 7' is adjustable toward and from the pointedend of the socket-piece t and prevents the point of the pencil frombeing broken. With this construction the point of the pencil will begiven a longitudinal concave surface, as will be readily understood andas is shown in Fig. 7, and thepoint of the pencil may also be madelonger than with the construction shown in Fig. 3. I

This device is simple in construction and operation and perfectlyadapted to accomplish the result for which it is intended, and changesin and modifications of the construction described may be made withoutdeparting from the spirit of my invention or sacrificing its advantages.

It will be understood that in practice the device is secured to a bench,desk, or any other suitable support and any kind or class of a pencilmay be quickly, easily, and conveniently sharpened, and, if desired, anysuitable receptacle may be provided for the reception of dust or litterwhich may be occasioned by the sharpening of the pencil. It will also beunderstood, of course, that the wheel g operates simply as a grinder forsharpening a pencil and any suitable wheel may be employed for thispurpose.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a device of the class described, a frame or-support, a tubularshaft mounted horizontally in the top portion thereof and movablelongitudinally and provided at its inner end with a clutch-head,a mainpower-shaft mounted in the frame or support at a lateral angle to thetubular shaft, another shaft mounted parallel with the main power-shaft,a sleeve mounted on the last-named shaft and geared in connection .withthe main power-shaft, a grinding-wheel connected with said sleeve, asocket member supported adjacent to one side of the grinding-wheel andadapted to receive the end of a pencil passed through the tubular shaftand clutch-head, said socket member being open on the side adjacent tothe grinding-wheel and means for operating the tubular shaft, thepower-shaft and the sleeve on which the grinding-wheel is mounted,substantially as shown and described.

2. In a. device of the class described, a frame or support, ascrew-threaded shaft mounted therein and provided in one side with alongitudinal groove,a gear-wheel mounted thereon and provided with aspline or rib movable in said groove and a vertically movablespring-supported pin mounted over the tubular shaft and-provided at itslower end with threads or teeth adapted to engage with the threads ofsaid shaft, substantially as shown and described.

3. In a device of the class described, a frame or support, ascrew-threaded shaft mounted therein and provided in one side with alongitndinal groove,a gear-wheel mounted thereon andprovided with aspline or rib movable -in said groove and a vertically-movablespring-supported pin mounted over the tubular shaft and provided at itslower end with threadsor teeth adapted to engage with the threads ofsaid shaft, said tubular shaft being provided at one end with aclutch-head and having pivoted dogs adapted to engage a pencil passedthrough said tubular shaft, substantially as shown and described.

4. In a device of the class described a frame or support, ascrew-threaded shaft mounted therein and provided in one side with a1ongitudinal.groove,a gear-wheel mounted thereon and provided with aspline or ribrmovable in said groove and a vertically movablespring-supported pin mounted over the tubular shaft and provided at itslower end with threads or teeth adapted to engage with the threads ofsaid shaft, said tubular shaft being provided at one end with aclutch-head and having pivoted dogs adapted to engage a pencil passedthrough said tubular shaft, said dogs being operated in one direction bysprings and the other by a ring or band mounted on the clutch-head,substantially as shown and described.

5. A device of the class described comprising a frame or support, agrinding disk or wheel the central portion of which is thinner than therest thereof, whereby beveled or inclined surfaces are formed adjacentto said center portion, a socket member secured adjacent to one side ofsaid disk or wheel and adapted to'receive the end of a pencil, and meansfor feeding a pencil into said socket member and for turning said diskor wheel, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed myname, in presence of the subscribing witnesses, this 4th day of October,1902.

HENRY ELLSVVORTH CURTIS.

Witnesses:

ROBERT BETTY, LEWIs SYKES.

